Data services are expected to have significant growth over the next few years and will likely become the dominant source of third generation (3G) traffic and revenue. In order to meet the increasing demand for high data-rate multimedia services, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) has released, and continues to evolve, a new high-speed data transfer feature named High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA). High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) is one of the key features of the third generation wireless communication standard for Wide Band Code Division Multiple Access (W-CDMA). W-CDMA is proposed to support multimedia services in the downlink direction. HSDPA brings high speed data delivery to 3G terminals to help users receive effective multimedia capabilities that benefit from data rates previously unavailable due to limitations in the radio access network between the user terminal and the base station. In order to achieve this high speed data delivery, several key technologies, such as Adaptive Modulation and Coding (AMC) and Hybrid-ARQ (Automatic Repeat Request) have been considered and adopted in the relevant telecommunication standards. Furthermore, fast signaling techniques have also been used for HSDPA to enhance the AMC link adaptation technique. In HSDPA communication systems, fast signaling is applied using High Speed Shared Control Channels (HS-SCCH) which carry control information to terminals for receiving and decoding associated data channels (High Speed Downlink Shared Channel—HS-DSCH) which commences transmission two slots after the start of transmission of the control channel.
In order to reduce the number of information bits transmitted, certain types of information are encoded with only indicator information being sent to user equipment. This information includes channelization codes associated with the data channels, transport block size, redundancy version parameters, the new data indicator parameter, and modulation scheme. This encoded information is sent on the shared control channel (HS-SCCH) which is always two slots in advance of the associated data channel (HS-DSCH).
The HS-SCCH had been designed to carry a single bit modulation scheme indicator or ‘modulation specifier’. This single bit modulation scheme indicator supports either quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK) or 16-quadrature amplitude modulation scheme (16-QAM) selection. However, with the present design of HS-SCCH it is not possible to signal higher schemes of modulation (like 64-QAM) to the user equipment.
Accordingly, there is a need for a method for signaling higher schemes of modulation (like 64-QAM) to the user equipment.
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The apparatus and method components have been represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present invention so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein.